New Zealand's first ALL BLACKS rugby team - named the ORIGINALS in 1905

The Original All Blacks (also known simply as "The Originals") were the first New Zealand national rugby union team to tour outside Australasia

The 1905 All Blacks tour of Britain went on to achieve legendary status within the rugby world and New Zealand in particular. They scored 976 points and conceded only 59 and thus set the standard for all subsequent All Black sides. The tour also saw the first use of the All Blacks name and established New Zealand's reputation as a world class rugby nation

The team departed New Zealand as the New Zealand Football Team, or simply The New Zealanders, though names such as Maorilanders and Colonials were also applied. Reference to the team by the name "All Blacks" first appeared during the "Originals" tour when, according to Billy Wallace, a London newspaper reported that the New Zealanders played as if they were "all backs". Wallace claimed that due to a typographical error, subsequent references were to "All Blacks"

Some authorities record the first use of the haka by the New Zealand team as occuring in Britain in 1905/6. Sydney based Kiwi journalist Spiro Zavos however claims the very first New Zealand team, in New South Wales in 1884 "used a Maori war cry to introduce itself to its opponents before each of its matches".
Although the 1905/6 All Blacks in Britain really popularised the haka, the "Originals" were not the first rugby team to perform the haka in Britain. That distinction goes to the "Native" team on 3 October 1888 before their tour opener against Surrey. The privately organised "Natives" tour had to pay its way and the pre match haka was no doubt seen as a means of attracting the public. The original intention was that the haka would precede each match and that mats and other traditional costume would be used. The mats were soon discarded and the initial reaction to the haka was rather unfavourable. The war cry they are described as using, "Ake Ake Kia Kaha", suggest it was not the Te Rauparaha haka they performed.

Harold Louis "Bunny" ABBOTT
- born 17th June 1882 in Camerontown
- died 16th January 1971 Palmerston North aged 88
PARENTS: William ABBOTT & Annie McGUINESS
- children of William & Annie:
1880 - William George Abbott
1882 - Harold Louis Abbott
1884 - Marion Catherine Abbott
1885 - Frederick Edwin Abbott
1886 - Ethel Maud Abbott
1897 - Eric Abbott
1901 - Vera Pretoria Abbott
SPOUSE - married Isabell Ruth EDGCOMBE (1894-1984) in 1914
PROVINCE - TARANAKI
POSITION - WING THREE-QUARTERS
HEIGHT - 1.79m (5 ft 10 in)
WEIGHT - 82 kg (12st - 180 lb)
- BIO: added to the team after the preliminary tour of Australia, he won his first Test cap for New Zealand on January 1, 1906 against France. In total he played one Test in 1906. After Billy Wallace he was the longest survivor of the Originals, dying in early 1972 just a few weeks before Wallace

Ernest Edward, Ernie, "General" BOOTH
- born 24th February 1876 in Teschemakers, Otago
- died 18th October 1935 in Christchurch aged 59
PARENTS: David & Annie BOOTH
- children of David & Annie:
1876 - Ernest Edward Booth
1880 - David Edwin Booth
1882 - Clarence Reade Booth
- (probably more children, not yet found)
SPOUSE - married Annie Blair PARLANE in 1896
PROVINCE - OTAGO
POSITION - THREE-QUARTERS & FULLBACK
HEIGHT - 5ft 7
WEIGHT - 11st 10lb
- BIO: He won his first Test cap for New Zealand on January 1 1906 against France. In total he played 3 Tests over a period of 1906 to 1907. He covered the tour of 1908-09 Wallabies as a journalist and sent detailed reports back to the Sydney-based Referee sporting newspaper on the match on Christmas Eve against North Glamorgan which was played at Merthyr's Penydarren Park where the tourists won 13-5 - the match is sometimes omitted from Australian histories. His War service: 2nd Lieutenant, YMCA, Australian Imperial Force. Some Rugby Don'ts told by Ernie to Waikato players

James "John" CORBETT
- born 1st January 1880 possibly Reefton
- died 11th April 1945 aged 65 in Ratapiko
PARENTS:
PROVINCE - WEST COAST
POSITION - FORWARD
HEIGHT - 5ft 11in
WEIGHT - 13st 9lb
- BIO: Played 16 matches for NZ. John Corbett like many rugby players over the years played at representative level for both the West Coast and Buller provinces. Corbett, a lock-forward, was selected in the 1905 'Originals' All Blacks for their famous tour of Australia and Britain. He was selected from the Reefton club which in those days was affiliated to the West Coast Union. Interestingly Corbett played for the All Blacks before he had ever played provincial rugby. On the British tour Corbett took the field in 12 matches, his appearances being restricted by injuries. Played well enough to win South Island honours twice after his return from Britain but did not gain New Zealand selection again. As a Buller player in 1908 Corbett had the honour of captaining a combined Buller-West Coast team against the touring Anglo-Welsh side (The early form of the British Lions). In 1915 he was a Buller selector

William "Bill" CUNNINGHAM
- born 8th July 1874 in Rangiaohia
- died 3rd September 1927 in Auckland
PARENTS: James CUNNINGHAM & Sarah nee HALBERT
PROVINCE - AUCKLAND
POSITION - FORWARD
HEIGHT - 5ft 11in
WEIGHT - 14st 6lb (put on 2 stone before the Ireland match)
- BIO: When the team returned to New Zealand after the 1904 Australian tour season the experienced Aucklander Bill Cunningham was added to fill a weakness that had shown up in the specialist lock position. He was one of the 2 Maori players (the other was Billy Stead). In the game against Scotland on November 18 1905, Bill scored a try with seconds remaining making the All Blacks winners at 127.
He married Ethel Minnie DANCE 1 August 1907
NOTE thanks to Rokay for filling in the blanks (see comments)

Robert George "Bob" DEANS
- born 19th February 1884 in Christchurch
- died 30th September 1908 in Christchurch aged 24 as a result of complications arising from an appendix operation
PARENTS: John DEANS & Catherine Edith PARK
- children of John & Catherine:
1880 - John Deans
1883 - Jane Edith Deans
1884 - Robert George Deans
1885 - James Deans
1886 - Catherine Deans
1889 - William Deans
1891 - Alexander Deans
1892 - Douglas Deans
1894 - Colin Deans
1896 - Violet Deans
1898 - Stuart Maxwell Deans
PROVINCE - CANTERBURY
POSITION - FIVE-EIGHTHS
HEIGHT - 6ft
WEIGHT - 13st 4lb
- BIO: Among his team-mates and everyone else, it seems, Deans had a reputation for the utmost honesty and integrity. A non drinker and non smoker, Deans was one of the most religious members of the Originals and on Sundays a regular attender at services. Wallace later described him as having "a generous nature" and because he was so great-hearted was loved by all of his team-mates.

David "Dave" GALLAHER(Captain)
- born 30th October 1873 in Ramelton, County Donegal, Ireland
- died 4th October 1917 aged 43 in Belgium
PARENTS: James GALLAHER & Maria McCLOSKIE who emigrated to New Zealand in May 1878 as part of the Katikati Special Settlement scheme in the Bay of Plenty. Originally settling in Katikati in the Bay of Plenty, they moved to Auckland in the 1890s and it was there that Dave played his provincial rugby.
SPOUSE - he married Ellen Ivy May FRANCIS in 1906
PROVINCE - AUCKLAND
POSITION - FORWARD
HEIGHT - 6ft
WEIGHT - 13st
- BIO: Dave Gallaher would have been among the most imperishable legends of All Black rugby because of the fact that he led the first landmark national team, the "Originals" on their extraordinarily successful tour of Britain and France. He was not only the leader but a key player in the controversial position of wing forward and also with the vice captain, the five eighths Billy Stead, one of the team's tactical masterminds.
David Gallaher fought in the Boer War serving as corporal #3229 in the 6th and 10th New Zealand Contingents of Mounted Rifles. Although exempt from conscription due to his age, he also volunteered to fight in World War I as Company Sergeant Major #32513 but then reverted to Sergeant upon arrival in England (he apparently altered his date of birth to 31 October 1876). He saw action at Ypres and was killed during the Passchendaele offensive on 4 October 1917. He is buried at Nine Elms Cemetery, Poperinge, where his gravestone bears the silver fern. Two of Gallagher's brothers were also killed in France

Francis Turnbull "Frank" GLASGOW
- born 17th August 1877 in South Dunedin
- died 20th February 1939 aged 59 in Wellington
PARENTS: James McClure GLASGOW & Annie TURNBULL
- children of James & Annie:
1880 - Francis Glasgow (only child found at this time)
- James McClure Glasgow ( 1805- 1890) had a brother, the Rev Adam Dickey Glasgow (1814-1862) both servied for some time as missionaries in India. ...
SPOUSE - married Kathleen Edith Mary DAVIS in 1900
PROVINCE - TARANAKI
POSITION - FORWARD
HEIGHT - 5ft 10in
WEIGHT - 13st 3lb
- BIO: Glasgow played as a loose forward, either in the back row or on the side of the second row, though he could also cover hooker. Glasgow played all 5 tests on the Originals tour, and was recalled to play hooker for the final test against the 1908 Lions. In 1905: New Zealand forward Frank Glasgow leaves the inaugural All Blacks tour to the UK and Ireland to form an alternative peace commune in Cornwall. His departure is even more shocking as it comes midway through the 15-0 win over Ireland in Dublin.

William Spiers "Bill" GLENN
- born 21st February 1877 in Greymouth
- died 5th October 1953 in Wanganui aged 75
PARENTS: George & Catherine Spiers GLENN
- children of George & Catherine:
1875 - Robert Alfred Glenn
1877 - William Speirs Glenn
1879 - Isabella Mary Glenn
1883 - George Cyril Glenn
1886 - John Andrew Glenn
1888 - Gertrude Susan McConnell Glenn
SPOUSE - married Linda Marian PARSONS in 1904
PROVINCE - TARANAKI
POSITION - FORWARD
HEIGHT - 5ft 11in
WEIGHT - 12st 12lb
- BIO: William was elected a member of the Manaia Town Board in the year 1904. He had a farm of 350 acres on the Waimate Plains and carried on dairying. he moved to Taranaki as a child with his parents, who settled at Manaia. He was educated in the Manaia public school and brought up to farming. Later on he became an auctioneer in the firm of Steuart and Corrigan for three years. He was secretary of the Manaia Tennis Club and a member of the Egmont Racing Club and of the Egmont Agricultural and Pastoral Association. He owned several thoroughbred brood mares and was part owner of the well known horse Maniopoto. He was a Reform Party Member of Parliament, elected to the Rangitikei electorate in the 1919 general election but was defeated in 1928

Eric Tristram Gerald "Aristocratic Eric" HARPER
- born 1st December 1877 in Papanui into a prominenet pioneer family
- died 30th April 1918 aged 40 in Jerusalem, Palestine
PARENTS: George HARPER & Agnes Margaret LOUGHMAN 11 Cashel St, Christchurch
- children of George & Agnes:
1877 - Eric Tristram Gerald Harper
- Before he enlisted in 1917 he was a Barrister and Solicitor
1880 - Cuthbert Strachey Harper
- served in the South African War, 1899-1902 #5853
1883 - Philip Hamilton Harper
- served in the Boer & First World war
1886 - Robert Paul "Robin" Harper
- served in WWI & WWII
1885 - Gerald Gordon Harper
- Gerald enlisted with the Canterbury Mounted Rifles as early as October 1916 and saw action at Gallipoli. He was wounded during the beach landing at Suvla Bay in August that year and was hospitalised in England. He received a D.C.M and a commission to 2nd Lt for services while in charge of machine guns at Gallipoli. After recovering he went to Egypt where he was part of the Yeomanry Cavalry. He died on 12 August 1916 from shell wounds received while fighting at Romani alongside his brother Lt Robin Harper. Robin carried him off the front line personally. Gordon is buried at Cairo War Memorial Cemetery, Egypt
SPOUSE - Beatrice A.S. Harper (nee ??)
- 2 children Frederick George & Annie Harper
PROVINCE - CANTERBURY
POSITION - THREE-QUARTER
HEIGHT - 5ft 11in (1.8m)
WEIGHT - 12st 7lb (80kg)
- BIO: He was educated at Christchurch Boys High. A sportsman of some note he won the first national track title in 1901 in the 440 yards hurdle and the next year won the 880 yards hurdles. Harper was also a keen mountaineer and made important discoveries in the Southern Alps. With the outbreak of the First World War he joined the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, a military unit sent from New Zealand to fight for the British. Reaching the rank of Sargent Major he served in the Canterbury Mounted Rifles division and was posted to Palestine. On 30 April 1918, while his unit was coming under artillery bombardment in Jerusalem, he attempted to quiet horses and was killed in the attack. He is commemorated at the Jerusalem Memorial in Israel.

James "Jimmy" HUNTER
- born 6th March 1879 in Hawera
- died 4th December 1962 in Wanganui
PARENTS: Moore HUNTER & Mary MURRAY
- children of Moore & Mary:
1875 - Janie Hunter Hunter
1877 - Alexander Hunter
1879 - James Hunter
1880 - Margaret Hunter
1882 - Moore Hunter
1884 - Amelia Hunter
1887 - Robert Gilchrist Hunter
1888 - Andrew Torry Hunter
1890 - Isabella Bell Hunter
1893 - Mary Murray Hunter
PROVINCE - TARANAKI
POSITION - SECOND FIVE-EIGHTHS
HEIGHT - 5ft 6in (1.68m)
WEIGHT - 11st 8lb (73kg)
- BIO: Jimmy Hunter will probably always be a name that will live forever in New Zealand rugby. A gifted midfield back, Hunter had deceptive pace and agility and a trickiness. Described by a contemporary critic EDH Sewell as "one of the most sinuous runners" he had seen, Hunter was one of the stars of the 1905-06 Originals on their tour of Britain. He was from a farming family in Taranaki and attended Wanganui Collegiate. He then joined the Hawera Rugby Club and was selected to play for Taranaki in 1898 at the age of 18. He played in almost every position in the Taranaki backline before settling on second five-eighth. He continued to play for Taranaki and played for them against the touring Great Britain team that toured New Zealand in 1904. He was also selected to play for the All Blacks to play the one Test match against Great Britain, but after an injuring himself the day before the match, he was replaced. He was Captain in the 1905 tour of Australia

William, (Bill) "Massa" JOHNSTON
- born 13th September 1881 in Dunedin
- died 9th January 1951 in Sydney, Australia
PARENTS: Robert JOHNSTON & Mary Ann
- (known) children of Robert & Mary Ann
1879 - Agnes Johnston
1881 - William Johnston
1885 - Robert Johnston
PROVINCE - OTAGO
POSITION - FORWARD
HEIGHT - 6ft
WEIGHT - 13st 6lb
- BIO: Bill first played senior rugby union for the Alhambra club in 1897 aged only 15. He made his debut for Otago in 1903 and represented Otago again in 1904, playing in six matches in total. In 1904 he was the first played sent off in a Ranfurly Shield match as Otago went down to Wellington. He played for the South Island in 1904, 1905 and 1907. After returning to New Zealand with the touring party, Johnston then returned to Great Britain, signing with the Wigan club. In Wigan he helped the club win both the Championship and the Lancashire Cup. The next season Wigan again lifted the Lancashire Cup. In 1910 he moved to Warrington. After retirement Johnston moved to Australia where he was a commissionaire at the Royal Sydney Agricultural Showgrounds

William Henry "Bill" MACKRELL
- born 20th July 1881 in Milton, NSW, Australia
- died 15th July 1917 in Auckland
PARENTS: unknown
PROVINCE - AUCKLAND
POSITION - FORWARD
HEIGHT - 5ft 10in (178cm)
WEIGHT - 12st 7lb (79kg)
- BIO: Mackrell didn't go to Australia for the short tour in July, instead opposing the team for Auckland in the shakedown match and then played the last of the warm-up games, against Wellington Province, before sailing for England. Amazingly, this proved to be Mackrell's last first-class match in this country. George Dixon noted in The Triumphant Tour of the New Zealand Footballers that he was 'the unlucky man of the tour. He contracted influenza shortly after landing and it was a long time before he was thoroughly well again.' He finally got his chance against Munster and played the next two midweekers before having the entire Welsh portion of the tour on the sideline. He played his only test against France (won 38-8) and both matches in America on the way home.

Alexander, Alex McDONALD
- born 23rd April 1883 in Dunedin
- died 4th May 1967 in Wellington aged 84
PARENTS: John & Mary McDONALD
PROVINCE - OTAGO
POSITION - FORWARD
HEIGHT - 5ft 10in
WEIGHT - 13st
- BIO: The tour of North America by the All Blacks was the last international games played by their captain Alex McDonald. His last match was against Vancouver on 24th November 1913.

Harry Jonas "Simon" MYNOTT
- born 4th June 1876 in Auckland
- died 2nd January 1924 aged 47 in New Plymouth
PARENTS: John MYNOTT & Jane Landon JONAS
- children of John & Jane:
1876 - Harry Jonas Mynott
1881 - Elsie Margaret Mynott
- (as John & Jane were married in 1868 there were probably other children than these)
PROVINCE - TARANAKI
POSITION - FIVE-EIGHTHS
HEIGHT - 5ft 7in
WEIGHT - 11st 9lb
- BIO: Usually a first five-eighth, Mynott made his international debut against Ireland as a wing three-quarter. Until Frank Bunce overtook his record in 1996, he was the oldest back to represent New Zealand. He was 34 years and 28 days old when he took the field for his final international, the third test on the 1910 tour of Australia. A brilliant attacking player and also sound on defence Also known as 'Simon', Mynott was regarded as a splendid sportsman. With Jimmy Hunter he formed a formidable five-eighth combination known as 'the Taranaki Twins'. He was a Taranaki selector 1910-14 and an All Black selector in 1913.

Frederick, Fred "Fatty" NEWTON
- born 7th May 1881 in Christchurch
- died 10th December 1955 in Christchurch aged 74
PARENTS: William NEWTON & Mary Anne COLLINS
- children of William & Mary Anne:
1877 - Albert William Newton
1880 - Edward Ernest Newton
1881 - Frederick Newton
1883 - William Richard Newton
1884 - Francis Henry Newton
- (not all verified)
PROVINCE - CANTERBURY-WEST COAST
POSITION - FORWARD
HEIGHT - 6ft - 1.8m
WEIGHT - 15st - 95kg
- BIO: 19 matches (3 tests) for NZ. At 1.83m and 95kg Fred was the biggest player on the 1905 'Originals' All Blacks tour. His physique won him the nickname of 'Fatty'. Playing out of the Linwood club Newton was selected for Canterbury and the South Island side which eventually led to his All Black selection in 1905. A railway worker Newton was transferred to Westport where in 1908 he played the last of his 30 first class games in the Cardinal and blue colours of Buller in a match against Marlborough.

George William NICHOLSON
- born 3rd August 1878 in Auckland
- died 13th September 1968 in Auckland
PARENTS: John William & Annie Katrina NICHOLSON
SPOUSE - possibly married Ellen Frances McINTYRE in 1913
PROVINCE - AUCKLAND
POSITION - FORWARD
HEIGHT - 6ft 3in
WEIGHT - 13st 10lb
- BIO: In the Cardiff game on 26th December 1905, the match was played at Cardiff Arms Park in front of 50,000 spectators. After a missed drop goal and missed penalty Cardiff scored with a try to Nicholls that was set up by Gabe. The conversion was successful giving Cardiff a 50 lead. about 20 minutes into the match Jim O'Sullivan broke his collarbone after being tackled heavily; as a result the All Blacks played the rest of the match with only 14 men. The All Blacks attacked with every opportunity they could and before half time Mona Thomson scored in the corner for the All Blacks. Wallace converted the try to leave the scores 55 at half time. For the first 30 minutes of the second half the two teams attacked one after the other. After Cardiff captain Percy Bush failed to force down a ball behind his own goal-line George Nicholson dived on the ball to score a try. Wallace converted to give the All Blacks a 105 lead

Frederick, 'Fred' ROBERTS
- born 7th April 1882 in Wellington
- died 21st July 1956 in Wellington
PARENTS: William Jones ROBERTS & Eliza Jane PHILLIPS
PROVINCE - WELLINGTON
POSITION - HALFBACK
HEIGHT - 5ft 7in
WEIGHT - 12st 4lb
- BIO: Fred Roberts was the first great All Black halfback. He scored two tries in the All Blacks v Lions test, June 6 1908. The match with Munster was played at Markets Field in Limerick on Tuesday 28 November 1905 and the touring side defeated Munster 33-0. The eight tries witnessed by the 3,000 strong crowd included a penalty try after Fred Roberts was tripped close to the line. It was reported by the British press that Stead and fellow All Black Fred Roberts used the Maori language to direct play ...

Charles Edward, (Charlie) "Bronco" SEELING
- born 14th May 1883 in Wanganui
- died 29th May 1956 Stalybridge, England in car accident aged 73
PARENTS: unknown
SPOUSE - married Margaret SULLIVAN in 1907
PROVINCE - AUCKLAND
POSITION - FORWARD
HEIGHT - 6ft (1.83m)
WEIGHT - 13st 7lb (87kg)
- BIO: Seeling played as a combative loose forward. Considered the most complete forward in NZ rugby until Maurice Brownlie in the 1920s. Seeling played 10 tests in the back row and 1 in the second row. He played in the forwards for the original All Blacks, appearing in 11 tests. He then signed with English rugby league club, Wigan RLFC in 1910. From then until 1913 he scored 54 tries for Wigan and appeared in three consecutive championship finals. Seeling went on to make over 200 first grade appearances for the club over thirteen years, playing as captain for three of them. Noted British rugby writer, E. H. D. Sewell, wrote of Seeling: "Search where one may, a better forward than Seeling does not exist." He spent the rest of his life in Britain

John William "Billy" STEAD
- born 16th September 1877 in Invercargill
- died 21st July 1958 in Bluff aged 80
PARENTS: John STEAD & Florence SMALL
- children of John & Florence:
1877 - John William Stead
1880 - Henry Arthur Stead
1882 - Allan Stead
1884 - Florence Violet Stead
1887 - Margaret May Stead
1889 - Oswald Victor Stead
1894 - Norman Farrel Stead
SPOUSE - married Emily Agnes RICE in 1901
PROVINCE - SOUTHLAND
POSITION - FIVE-EIGHTHS
HEIGHT - 5ft 8lb (1.73m)
WEIGHT - 10st 9lb (64kg)
- BIO: A bootmaker by trade, he also co-authored The Complete Rugby Footballer with Dave Gallaher, and was a columnist for the Southland Times, and New Zealand Truth. He was one of the 2 Maori players (the other was Bill Cunningham). Billy Stead first played representative rugby for Southland in 1896. He was only 18 at the time, and continued to play for the province until 1908; raking up 52 matches for the province in total. Vice Captain in 1905 (Dave Gallaher was Captain)

George William "the Greyhound" SMITH
- born 20th September 1874 in Auckland eldest of 10 children
- died 8th December 1954 in Oldham, England
PARENTS: William SMITH & Caroline PELL
PROVINCE - AUCKLAND
POSITION - THREE-QUARTERS
HEIGHT - 5ft 7in
WEIGHT - 11st 12lb
- BIO: Both on the preliminary tour of Australia and New Zealand, in which playing at centre he scored a try against Auckland, and in the Originals' early matches in Britain George Smith was in great form. In 14 matches he finished with 19 tries, with his personal highlight coming in the international against Scotland. He scored two tries in the 12-7 win but after playing in the international against Ireland he broke a collarbone and made just one more appearance on the tour. Smith was playing in Auckland club rugby. and there was much criticism of his omission from the All Blacks' 1907 tour of Australia. This may have been because he was suspected, rightly so, as being involved with the organisation of the proposed "All Golds" rugby league tour and because he had not signed the NZRFU's loyalty agreement. After touring with the All Golds he stayed on in Britain to play professionally with the Oldham club until 1916 when he broke his leg. His son, George Smith, played both rugby codes and died in a Japanese prisoner camp in 1943

William Joseph, (Billy) "Carbine" WALLACE
- born 2nd August 1878 in Wellington
- died 2nd March 1972 in Wellington aged 93
PARENTS: Matthew Rolleston WALLACE & Louisa STIRLING
- children of Matthew & Louisa:
1877 - Elizabeth Wallace
1878 - William Joseph Wallace
1880 - John Wallace
1885 - Rose Wallace
SPOUSE - married Jessie MOWATT in 1911
PROVINCE - PONEKE, WELLINGTON
POSITION - THREE-QUARTERS
HEIGHT - 5ft 8in (1.73m)
WEIGHT - 12st (76kg)
- BIO: Wallace was the first New Zealander to top 500 first class points. He won his first Test cap for New Zealand on August 15, 1903 against Australia. In total he played 11 Tests over a period of 1903 to 1908. When speaking at the team's 50th Jubilee in 1955, Billy gave his version of how the name originated: "Now I'm just going to mention how we got the name of All Blacks'. These coves don't know, I was on the Committee and I know all about it. We played Hartlepool and we beat them 63-0, and the 'Daily Mail; an English paper, wrote up 'New Zealand team all backs' you see. So we were, all our forwards could pass as good as any back, and it was headed up 'New Zealand All Backs'. And the next match we went on, I think it was Somerset. This All Black' was a printer's error and we went on to Somerset and all around the town it said 'Come and see the All Blacks play; the printer had made a mistake and instead of All Back' he had got the 'l' in somehow and made it All Black; and that's how the name of All Blacks' originated and it's stuck ever since. The 'Daily Mail' took it up and we went to Ireland and we were on our way to have a bit of a practice and they announced the route in the papers and everybody was at the gate to see the All Blacks' go past and they all thought we were a lot of, you know, blacks and when they saw us go past 'Bejasus, they are as white as ourselves, as white as ourselves'. Just the name, when they changed to All Blacks' they did think we were dinkum, you know, darkies."

AFTERMATH
... Despite the success of the tour and the reception the team received on its return home, by the end of the following year four of the side George Smith, Bill Mackrell, Massa Johnston and Duncan McGregor had switched codes to Northern Union (rugby league) and toured Britain again with the All Golds. A fifth, George Nicholson, it seems was within a smidgeon of switching also but stayed with rugby and made a huge contribution to the Ponsonby club. George Tyler, whose brother was one of the All Golds, may also have been close to joining them. By 1911 two more team members, George Gillett and superstar forward Charlie Seeling, had also changed codes. The Northern Union scouts who had seen some of the All Black matches and approached several of the players had to wait but met with some eventual success.

Comments

thank you to Rokay for the following message:
Subject: William (Bill) Cunningham All Black -1905 Originals
To: ngairedith
From: Rokay
Date: 2013-10-28 22:17:49
... Bill's parents were James CUNNINGHAM and Sarah nee HALBERT. This info is from Bill's marriage registration - he married Ethel Minnie DANCE in 1907. I am not related to Bill but have an interest in him because he played rugby for Waihi, starting back in 1896.